Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are addressed to the Minister of Health and Social Services. I want to follow up on my statement. I mentioned a number of statistics in my statement and I want to provide a few more.
Diabetes prevalence rates among Aboriginal populations are at least three times higher than the general population. Aboriginal populations face higher risks for prediabetes and obesity, and Aboriginal women are particularly vulnerable to diabetes. They have four times the rate of non-Aboriginal women. They also have a higher risk for gestational diabetes.
I spoke to the cost of diabetes to our system, to our health system, to our government, and in the NWT those costs are fully borne by the government. Diabetes treatment is fully covered as an insured service. So I would like to say to the Minister that we are managing this problem and this is an opportunity to solve the problem. I’d ask the Minister to explain to me and to the House the rationale for the exclusion of bariatric surgery in the list of ensured services for the NWT. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Department of Health and Social Services recognizes, and also in discussion with many people recognize that bariatric surgery and other issues or other medical services that could address obesity are something that we are looking at adding to our insured services. Thank you.
Thanks to the Minister. I’m glad to hear that this is something that may be on the horizon. The Minister mentioned he’s in discussion and that the department, I gather, is looking into this. I’d like to know from the Minister what kind of discussions are these, are these taking us forward to action and when might that action be. Thank you.
Thank you. As Minister I have the authority to add, delete or amend insured services. In May 2012 we had put a committee together with the NWT Medical Association, and now we’re in the process of developing the terms of reference for that so that we can look at making those changes to the medical services through looking at the regulations of the act. Thank you.
Thanks to the Minister. I didn’t mean a committee that was established almost a year ago. I hope he meant terms of reference for including bariatric surgery under our insured services.
Since we don’t currently provide insurance coverage for bariatric surgery, I’d like to know from the Minister if an individual in the NWT chooses to improve themselves, chooses to go and get the surgery done on their own and pay for it on their own, why do we not then assist them with any follow-up procedures, follow-up consultations that are required because there is very often, following the surgery, several visitations to doctors that are necessary and we refuse to do that. So why do we do that? Thank you.
That committee will be looking at bariatric surgery. Why currently the physicians are refusing to assist individuals that have bariatric surgery, I don’t know, but it’s on the agenda for that committee to look at, at specifically the whole area of bariatric surgery, the whole area of obesity and how it impacts and how it has a direct correlation on chronic disease such as diabetes. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final, short supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.
Thanks, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the Minister. I don’t know if the Minister understood my question. I’m not asking him at this point to cover the cost of the surgery, but following surgery there are very often follow-up consultations and follow-up procedures that are required and the Minister says physicians are refusing that. If the Minister gives direction for the system to cover the costs of follow-up, if people are trying to improve themselves, I don’t understand why we would not assist them in doing that. Thank you.
Thank you. Yes, I did misunderstand the question. I thought she was telling me that the physicians were refusing and I said I didn’t know why that was happening. But again, we are looking at that. We think that is one of the emerging issues in the whole issue of chronic disease management, and we recognize that this is an issue and we’re hoping that once the committee is able to discuss this, that changes can be made in the system and it can become part of the insured services. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The Member for Range Lake, Mr. Dolynny.
